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Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practice in THE TOURISM SECTOR
Efficient housekeeping
This best practice is an extract from the report Best Environmental
Management Practice in the Tourism Sector.
Find out about other best practices at www.takeagreenstep.eu/BEMP or download the full report at http://susproc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/activities/emas/documents/TourismBEMP.pdf
5.3
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 2
5 5.3 Efficient housekeeping
Description
Housekeeping is a critical component of accommodation services, a key control point for
service quality, and provides a link between accommodation management and guests. The major
functions of housekeeping are to:
make up beds and replace used bedclothes;
replace used towels and floor mats in bathrooms;
clean bathrooms and bedrooms;
replace all consumables (food, drinks, soaps, shampoos, etc.);
remove rubbish.
Section 6.1 deals with green procurement to minimise waste, such as the use of soap dispensers
instead of single-use soaps, and section 6.2 addresses best practice for waste sorting to minimise
waste sent for disposal. This section deals with the first four points in the above list, and is
located within the water management chapter of the document because of the importance of
these points, in particular laundry reduction, to water consumption.
The provision of clean, crease-free bedclothes is a particularly important quality control point
for accommodation establishments: unclean or creased bedclothes can give guests an instant bad
impression. Hotels launder 2 kg to 6 kg of bed linen and towels per room per day1, in the
process consuming up to 100 litres per occupied room – almost as much water as all other
service activities combined in a best practice hotel (see Figure 5.3 in section 5). Bedroom
laundry comprises sheets, pillow cases, duvet covers, towels and bath mats. Laundry represents
a major potential source of saving for water, energy and chemical consumption within
accommodation enterprises. Before laundry operations are optimised (sections 5.4 and 5.5),
considerable savings can be achieved through the minimisation of laundry volumes. Bed linen
and towel reuse programmes can reduce laundry volume by half (Smith et al., 2009).
Management and housekeeping staff play a key role in the effective design and implementation
of such programmes. Green procurement of textiles to reduce their lifecycle impact is also an
important control point.
Guest room and bathroom cleaning is a major source of chemical consumption within
accommodation establishments, and a significant source of water consumption. Chemical use
can be minimised through; (i) appropriate dilution of cleaning agents usually purchased in
concentrated form; (ii) efficient cleaning technique; (iii) use of microfiber clothes. Regular staff
training on chemical handling is very important, from a health and safety and environmental
perspective. Selection and green procurement of less environmentally harmful cleaning agents,
such as those that have been awarded an ISO Type-I ecolabel (e.g. EU Ecolabel, Nordic Swan:
section 2.2), can significantly reduce the impact of cleaning. Meanwhile, Gössling et al. (2011)
estimate that room cleaning consumes 12 – 47 L/guest-night of water. Water can be saved by:
turning off taps during cleaning
flushing toilet not more than once.
1 Accor (2010) refer to 4 kg per room per night; O'Neill et al. (2002) refer to median laundry of 5.4 kg per room per night from a US
study, ranging from 2.4 to 15.8 kg per room per night; Alliance for Water Efficiency (2009) refer to example of 5 lb (2.3 kg) per
room per night; Bohdanowicz and Martinac (2007) refer to an average of 2 kg per guest-night for Scandic hotels and 3.7 kg per
guest-night for Hilton hotels.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 3
The water saving associated with actions depends on the water efficiency of the fittings (section
5.2), but is in the region of 6 – 15 L/min and 2.5 – 12 L per flush, respectively.
Finally, housekeeping staff are positioned to influence guest behaviour, and to ensure efficient
operation of equipment within rooms. For example, where solar gain is high (e.g. windows
exposed to direct sunlight during summer months), housekeeping staff may close shutters or
curtains in order to prevent excessive heating of the rooms. Similarly, where unoccupied room
temperature is not controlled by a centralised building management system (section 6.1),
housekeeping staff may reset temperature controls to values that maintain guest comfort whilst
minimising energy consumption. Housekeeping staff can check for leaking water fittings
(section 5.1) and other damaged equipment that can increase water or energy consumption (e.g.
damaged seals on fridge doors). Table 5.1 summarises best practice for housekeeping
operations.
Table 5.12: Portfolio of housekeeping measures to reduce environmental impact of
accommodation
Aspect Measure Description
Efficient
housekeeping all Staff training
Staff are provided training in relevant operational
tasks to maximise (environmental) efficiency, and
tasks are explicitly linked with the organisation's
environmental objectives (see section 2.1).
Reduce laundry
water, energy and
chemical
consumption
Bedclothes reuse
Implement a schedule to change bed linen once per
specified number of days for the same guest, unless
a more frequent change is requested. Implement a
top-to-bottom sheet change.
Towel reuse
Implement an on-request towel change, with the
procedure to indicate towel washing clearly
conveyed to guests.
Textile green
procurement
Purchase bedclothes and towels that combine low
supply chain environmental impact with good use-
phase (laundry) environmental performance.
Reduce cleaning
water and chemical
consumption
Green procurement
Avoidance of environmentally damaging chemicals,
selection of ecolabelled cleaning agents and
microfiber clothes.
Efficient cleaning
Train staff on safe and efficient use of cleaning
agents and chemical-free methods (e.g. one-flush
toilet cleaning and microfiber cloths).
Reduce energy
consumption Energy check
Switch off appliances, close windows, reset
temperature controls
Reduce waste
Avoidance of
single use soaps See section 6.1 on waste avoidance
Waste sorting See section 6.2 on waste sorting and recycling.
Other Green procurement
consumables
Purchase lower environmental impact consumables
such as toilet paper, tissue paper, writing paper and
magazines for rooms (e.g. ecolabelled or FSC
certified paper)
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 4
Achieved environmental benefit
Green procurement
Increasing the useful life of textiles by specifying appropriate durable textiles with lower
laundry (in particular drying) requirements significantly reduces resource depletion and energy
consumption, and a range of other impacts associated with textile production such as water
pollution, climate change, ecotoxicity. Kalliala and Nousiainen (1999) concluded that the
potential lifetime of 50/50 cotton-polyester fabrics is twice as long as similar fabrics made of
pure cotton in hotel textile services, resulting in 42 % less production energy. Mixed fabrics also
require 20 % less laundering energy than pure cotton.
Green procurement of textiles, paper, cleaning agents and food based on ISO Type-1 ecolabels
and organic certification results in lower production impacts compared with average products
(Table 5.13).
Table 5.13: Key criteria and associated environmental benefits represented by various product
labels
Product and
label Key criteria Environmental benefits
Cleaning
agent, soap
and shampoo
ecolabels
Excluded toxic chemicals
Aquatic toxicity limits represented by critical
dilution volumes
Limited quantities of non-aerobically
biodegradable surfactants
Limited concentrations of volatile organic
compounds and phosphorus
Avoidance of propellant spray packaging
Clear user instructions provided on packaging
Reduced human toxicity and
ecotoxicity
Reduced eutrophication and
oxygen demand in receiving
waters
Reduced air pollution
Reduced resource depletion
and waste generation
Textile
ecolabels Toxic residue limits in final product, fibres
and dyes
Water pollution thresholds for production (e.g.
COD removal requirements)
Air pollution thresholds for production (e.g.
VOCs, N2O)
Biodegradability requirements and restricted
lists for processing agents
Restricted substances for dying and flame
retardants
Requirements for fabric durability in terms of
shape-holding and colour fastness
Reduced human toxicity and
ecotoxicity
Reduced eutrophication and
oxygen demand in receiving
waters
Reduced air pollution
Reduced resource depletion
and waste generation
Toilet paper
ecolabels Excluded substances in final products and
during production/processing (e.g. chlorine
gas, azo substances)
Reduced air emissions of sulphur and
greenhouse gases during production
Water pollution thresholds for production (e.g.
chlorine compounds and organic waste)
Air pollution thresholds for production (e.g.
Sulphur and nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide)
Reduced energy consumption during
production
Use of recycled fibres or virgin fibres from
sustainably managed forests
Reduced human and
ecotoxicity
Reduced eutrophication and
oxygen demand in receiving
waters
Reduced air pollution
Reduce global warming
potential
Reduced resource depletion
and waste generation
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 5
Textile and
food/drink
organic
labels
Limits to quantities of nutrients applied during
cultivation
Restrictions to types of fertilisers applied
(only organic nutrients and some natural
minerals allowed) during cultivation
Restricted range of plant protection agents
allowed during cultivation and processing
Limits for animal stocking densities
Specifications for animal feed
Restricted substances used in food processing
Reduced resource depletion
Reduced human and
ecotoxicity
Reduced on-farm biodiversity
impacts
Reduced eutrophication
Source: EC (2007); EC (2008); EC (2009); EC (2011).
Laundry reuse programmes
The environmental benefit of laundry reuse programmes is dependent upon: (i) the quantity of
laundry avoided; (ii) the eco-efficiency of the laundry process (see section 5.4 and section 5.5).
Water and energy savings can be calculated from the following formula:
Q = NR x (O/100) x (P/100) x VL x CL x ND
Q Quantity of water saved
Quantity of energy saved
L/yr
kWh/yr
NR Number of rooms N
O Average annual occupancy rate %
P Average participation rate % of occupied room nights
VL Average laundry volume per room per
change kg
C Average specific consumption of water
Average specific consumption of water
L/kg laundry
kWh/kg laundry
ND Annual business operating period Days/yr
Thus, for a 100-bed hotel with a 75 % occupancy rate and a participation rate of 30 %, a room
laundry volume of 3 kg and a laundry use efficiency of 7 L water and 1.5 kWh energy per kg
laundry, the annual water saving would be:
100 x 0.75 x 0.30 x 3 x 7 x 365 = 172 463 L, or 172 m3
For the same hotel, annual energy savings would equate to 86 231 kWh.
Efficient cleaning
Efficient cleaning techniques use less than half the water and chemicals of inefficient
techniques. For example:
applying a single low flush of 3 L on a dual flush toilet during cleaning, instead of two
full flushes, can save up to 9 L per guest-night, representing approximately 7 % of best
practice specific water consumption;
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 6
turning off taps during cleaning, rather than leaving a tap on for 90 seconds during
cleaning, can save between 5 and 20 litres of water, representing up to 15 % of best
practice specific water consumption;
using microfiber mops in place of wet mops can reduce water and chemical consumption
by 95% (Espinozal et al., 2010);
application of best practice techniques can reduce chemical consumption by at least 50 %
(see Figure 5.1).
Energy management and maintenance
Energy management, maintenance and reporting during housekeeping activities can make
important contributions towards energy and water minimisation. For example, reducing
thermostat settings by just 1 ºC in winter can reduce heating energy consumption by 10 %, and
similar savings in cooling energy consumption can be achieved in summer by correct thermostat
adjustment. In addition, closing shutters or curtains to avoid unwanted solar gain during the day
can reduce or avoid cooling energy consumption. Meanwhile, reporting leaking water fittings so
that they are fixed promptly can reduce room water consumption by hundreds of litres per day
(see section 5.1).
Appropriate environmental indicator
Indicators
Table 5. summarises environmental indicators relevant to housekeeping best environmental
management practices.
Table 5.14: Relevant environmental indicators for different aspects of housekeeping
Aspect Relevant indicators
Textiles Percentage of bedclothes made from polyester-cotton mix or linen
Percentage of room textiles made from organic material or awarded an ISO
Type-1 ecolabel
Bathroom
consumables Percentage of bathrooms that use ecolabelled soap and shampoo
Percentage of bathrooms with soap and shampoo dispensers
Laundry Average specific laundry requirements (kg) per guest-night
Percentage of occupied room nights that involve towel and bedclothes
reuse
Percentage reduction in laundry achieved through towel and bedclothes
reuse programmes
Cleaning Total chemical use within the hotel, expressed in relation to guest-nights
(see Figure 5.1)
Regular staff training on safe chemical handling and efficient cleaning that
minimises water and chemical use
Automatic dilution of cleaning chemicals, and clear instructions on dilution
Precise procedures in place for chemical-free cleaning methods, such as use
of microfiber cloths
Proportion of the amount of chemical products used for regular/general
cleaning that are ISO Type-1 ecolabelled (%)
Energy Regular staff training on energy management procedures to be performed
during housekeeping
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 7
Some aspects of efficient housekeeping are captured by key performance indicators and
associated benchmarks described in other sections. For example, measures to reduce water use
during cleaning are reflected in water consumption per guest-night (section 5.1), and measures
to reduce energy consumption are captured in energy consumption per guest-night (section 7.1).
Benchmarks of excellence
The following benchmarks of excellence are proposed specifically in relation to housekeeping.
BM: at least 80 % of bedclothes are cotton-polyester mix or linen, and at least 80 % of
bedroom textiles have been awarded an ISO Type 1 ecolabel or are organic.
BM: consumption of active chemical ingredients within the tourist accommodation of
≤10 grams per guest-night.
BM: reduction in laundry achieved through reuse of towels and bedclothes of at least
30 %.
BM: at least 80 % by active-ingredient weight of all-purpose cleaners, sanitary detergents,
soaps and shampoos used by the tourist accommodation shall have been awarded an
ISO Type I ecolabel2.
Figure 5.16: Specific consumption of active chemicals reported by a range of anonymous hotels,
with Nordic Swan ecolabel limits and the proposed benchmark of excellence indicated
2 Based on EU Ecolabel optional points criteria (EC, 2009)
0.00
0.01
0.02
0.03
0.04
Ch
em
ica
ls u
se
d (
kg
active
in
gre
die
nt
/ g
ue
st-
nig
ht)
Nordic Swan limit value (Class A, high occupancy
establishments)
Nordic Swan limit value (Class C, low occupancy
establishments)
Proposed benchmark of excellence
Hotels
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 8
Cross-media effects
Care should be taken to ensure that environmental criteria used in green procurement of textile
products reflect use phase impacts in addition to production impacts.
There are no significant cross-media effects for laundry minimisation, use of ecolabelled
detergents, soaps and shampoos (cleaning effectiveness is accounted for in ecolabel criteria), or
housekeeping measures to reduce energy consumption in rooms.
Espinoza et al. (2010) assume that microfiber mops must be washed after every room cleaned,
resulting in seven times higher washing energy requirements than for conventional mops.
However, the additional water, energy and chemical consumption for washing is less than the
95 % reduction in water and chemical consumption achieved during room cleaning by
microfiber mops.
Operational data
Green procurement
Textiles may be rented out from laundry service providers (Carbon Trust, 2009). Where textiles
are bought, it is important to have sufficient stock to cover peak service use whilst allowing
sufficient out-of-service time for laundry operations. The life expectancy of most textiles is
determined by the number of laundering cycles they are exposed to, but the useful lifetime of
hotel towels is usually constrained by the rate they go missing and the rate of rejection due to
permanent soiling (Kalliala and Nousiainen, 1999). It is essential that the correct specifications
and quantities be purchased, and it is recommended to test textiles for compatibility with
laundry processes prior to placing an order, and to retain at least three items unprocessed for
nine months in case of quality problems arising (DTC LTC, 2011).
The lifecycle environmental performance of textiles is determined by: (i) production impacts;
(ii) durability; (iii) servicing impacts (energy, water and chemical requirements for laundering).
Table 5. summarises important features of textiles made from different fibres with respect to
lifecycle environmental performance. Green procurement must also consider the dominant
purchasing criteria of perceived quality and price. The perceived quality (appearance, density,
size, softness and breathability) of bedclothes and towel textiles has become major marketing
feature for hotels. Polyester bedclothes may not be acceptable from a perceived quality
perspective for some hotels – despite their high durability and low servicing energy
requirements. Meanwhile, linen bedclothes are expensive and less readily available than cotton
and polyester bedclothes. Thus, cotton and cotton-polyester blends are the preferred options for
accommodation establishments. Meanwhile, for towels, cotton is the preferred type of textile
owing to its high absorbency and perceived quality.
The high environmental impacts of cotton and polyester can be considerably reduced by
selecting organic cotton and recycled polyester (MADE-BY, 2011). The EU Ecolabel for textile
products may be used to select textiles with lower manufacturing impacts – criteria include:
avoidance of harmful substances during manufacture, reduced water and air pollution during
manufacture, shrink resistance during washing and drying, colour resistance to perspiration,
washing, wet and dry rubbing and light exposure, no inorganic fibres, no harmful substances
such as azo dyes and solvents (2009/567/EC: EC, 2009). Durability is a critical factor as it is
directly related to the quantity of production for bedclothes. The energy consumption of 50/50
cotton-polyester over 100 laundering cycles is 42 % lower than for pure cotton sheets, owing to
the durability of polyester (Kalliala and Nousiainen, 1999).
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 9
Taking into account the above considerations,
the following is recommended as best practice
for room textile selection:
Towels: select organic cotton or
ecolabelled cotton, and avoid excessive sizing.
Consider non-white towels that can be washed
at lower temperature.
Bedclothes: select durable polyester-
cotton blends or linen. Specify recycled
polyester, organic or ecolabelled cotton and
organic or ecolabelled linen.
Carefully check product specifications
and test products before buying in bulk.
Above: Towels made from organic cotton in
the Gavarni Hotel, Paris. The beige colour
allows the towels to be washed at 30 ºC.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 10
Table 5.15: Summary of environmental performance of textiles made from different fibres during production and servicing, and perceived quality
Production Durability Servicing Perceived quality
Cotton High impact. High water,
pesticide, fertiliser
consumption during cotton
cultivation. Water pollution
from processing (MADE-BY,
2011; Muthu et al., 2011).
Low durability. Vulnerable to
damage when wet and at high
temperature. Half the lifespan of
polyester-cotton sheets (Kalliala
and Nousiainen, 1999).
High energy requirements. Cotton
absorbs a large amount of water
and becomes wrinkled, so has
high drying and ironing
requirements.
High. Pure cotton is soft,
absorbent and perceived as high
quality – especially at high thread
numbers (400 threads per square
inch or more). Variable price, but
high quality cotton is expensive.
Polyester High impact. Non-renewable
resource depletion, energy
consumption and ecotoxicity
impacts (MADE-BY, 2011;
Muthu et al., 2011).
High durability. Strong fibres,
resistant to distortion, but can
become discoloured and more
likely to become permanently
stained.
Low energy requirements. Low
water absorption and drying
requirements. However, may
require more chemicals to remove
stains, and an extra cooling rinse
to avoid creasing during spinning.
Low. Polyester does not absorb
moisture well, can feel hard, and
has low perceived quality. More
sophisticated fiber production has
improved the softness and feel of
some new polyester fabrics.
Inexpensive.
Linen
(from flax)
Low impact. Less energy than
polyester and cotton, less
water than cotton, low
ecotoxicity (MADE-BY,
2011; Muthu et al., 2011).
High durability. Strongest natural
fibre, 2 – 3 times stronger than
cotton, and excellent resistance to
washing wear owing to high wet
strength. Can become damaged
along frequent crease lines (e.g.
from repeated folding).
High energy requirements.
Absorbs a lot of water, and can
become creased, so requires
careful ironing.
Very high. Linen is highly
absorbent and breathable –
especially well suited to warm
conditions. It becomes softer with
time. Relatively inexpensive.
Cotton-
polyester
High impact – see above. High durability. The lifetime of
50/50 cotton-polyester fabrics is
twice as long as pure cotton
fabrics in hotels (Kalliala and
Nousiainen, 1999).
Relatively low energy
requirements. 50/50 cotton-
polyester fabrics require 20 %
less laundering energy than pure
cotton in hotels (Kalliala and
Nousiainen, 1999).
High. Softness and perceived
quality similar to pure cotton.
Expensive.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 11
Where possible, best practice is to avoid chemical use through use of
microfiber cloths and mops. Cleaning products are one of the
product groups in which ecolabels are most highly represented. ISO
Type-1 ecolabels, such as the EU Ecolabel, Nordic Swan and Blue
Angel consider a range of lifecycle environmental impacts, including
ecotoxicity and energy consumption, alongside cleaning
effectiveness. Labelled products represent front-runners in terms of
environmental and cleaning performance. ISO Type-1 ecolabels are
therefore the best guide to green procurement.
Best practice for non-ecolabelled cleaning agents is based on Nordic
Swan ecolabel criteria for accommodation (Nordic swan, 2007).
Establishments must declare that 95 % of non-ecolabelled substances
used:
are not classified as environmentally dangerous according to
Directive 99/45/EG;
do not contain specified chemical constituents including
alkylphenolethoxylates (APEO) and alkylphenol derivatives (APD),
dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride (DADMAC), Linear
alkylbenzene sulphonates (LAS), Reactive chlorine compounds
(exemption if required by authorities for hygiene reasons);
only contain surfactants that are readily biodegradable in
accordance with method 301 A-F in OECD Guidelines for testing of
chemicals.
Housekeeping operations include the replacement of toilet paper, complimentary soaps and shampoos,
and food and drinks offered within the room (e.g. in 'mini-bar' refrigerators). As for cleaning
chemicals, ecolabels are appropriate guides for green procurement of toilet paper and soaps and
shampoos, as specified in Nordic Swan and EU Ecolabel criteria for accommodation (Nordic Swan,
2007; EC, 2009). The use of soap and shampoo dispensers instead of individually wrapped items is an
important measure to avoid waste described in section 6.1. For food and drinks, a wide range of labels
and certification standards are relevant depending on the product group (see section 8.1). The most
extensive relevant standard is organic certification, indicated by various labels compliant with
Commission regulation EC 889/2008.
Above: EU Ecolabel
cleaning detergent in the
Gavarni Hotel, Paris.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 12
Left: A sample of organic
drinks and snacks contained
within the room selection
offered to guests in the
Gavarni hotel, Paris.
Laundry minimisation.
There are three key points for successful implementation of towel and bedclothes reuse schemes:
guests are provided with clear information and instruction
adequately sized and easy to use towel rails are installed
staff training.
Cards or notices to encourage guests to reuse sheets and towels should be placed in prominent
locations in the room/bathroom and hotel information booklets. Important information to present on
such cards or notices includes:
the value of water and the need to conserve it
the reduction in water use achievable through reuse
a request for guests to help the establishment conserve water by reusing sheets and towels
a brief but clear description of the procedure for reusing sheets and towels
information on any environmental scheme funded by laundry savings.
Typically, guests are requested to indicate towel reuse by hanging towels on a towel rail in the
bathroom, while sheet reuse may be indicated by not actively requesting a sheet change (Alliance for
Water Efficiency, 2009).
The policy on bed linen changes varies across establishments. The most common changing regimes
are for bedclothes to be changed once every day to every three days for longer-stay guests. One
variation is to implement a 'top to bottom' change method in which the top sheet is reused as the
bottom sheet and a fresh sheet used for the top-sheet (Travel Foundation, 2011).
One of the most important factors for success is the provision of adequate and easy to use towel rails
for storing and drying towels between reuse (Alliance for Water Efficiency, 2009). These should be
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 13
sized to accommodate towels once-folded, and positioned within easy reach of guests (average waist
to shoulder height where space allows).
Towel and bedclothes reuse schemes are only as effective as the housekeeping staff implementing
them. It is essential that staff are trained to follow the established procedures, so that if a guest hangs a
towel on the rail for reuse it is not replaced by a fresh one. Good record keeping is essential, and daily
checklists for each room should include changing dates for bedclothes.
Finally, guests are more likely to participate in reuse schemes when they believe it is motivated by
environmental protection and not cost saving by the hotel. Reference to water, chemical and energy
savings helps, but the best schemes invest laundry cost savings into environmental programmes – and
clearly convey this to guests. For example, savings made by Accor's towel reuse programme are
invested into the UN Environment Programme's 'Plant for the Planet' project. One tree is planted with
the money saved from five towel reuses, and Accor has a target to fund three million tree plantings by
2012 (Accor, 2011).
Low impact cleaning.
In the first instance, best environmental management practice is for accommodation management to
implement green procurement of microfiber cloths and mops, and ecolabelled or less harmful cleaning
chemicals (above). Chemical use can be considerably reduced through staff training in chemical
management and efficient cleaning techniques, and investment in chemical-free cleaning equipment.
Staff training in chemical management should include health and safety and environmental criteria. A
written list of all chemical products should be kept and updated on regular basis (at least yearly), and
accommodation management should ensure that clear and easily understood instructions for staff
regarding the dosage and handling of chemical products are readily accessible close to mains points of
storage and uses. Safety data sheets should be available for all chemicals used in languages spoken by
employees.
Staff training should be offered within the first month of service, and should be regularly updated.
Large hotels such as The Savoy in London hold daily briefing sessions with staff in which issues such
as chemical management are discussed. Particularly important aspects of housekeeping cleaning
operations are: (i) the use of the correct cleaning products for different tasks; (ii) the use of correct
dilution ratios; (iii) the use of efficient techniques that minimise water and chemical consumption.
Toilets only need to be flushed once after leaving cleaning chemicals in contact with the bowl
for sufficient time.
Whilst it is more efficient to purchase cleaning chemicals in concentrated form, if these are not
diluted as per instructions they will be over-consumed and/or ineffective. Ideally, an automatic
dosing system should be installed. Otherwise, in addition to training and signage, clear marking
of fill levels on spray bottles can reduce the incidence of incorrect dilution. Dilution volumes
should be adjusted for water hardness.
Correctly diluted cleaning agents should be applied directly to the surface and left as necessary
before rinsing off with a cloth rinsed in clean water. Taps should not be left running during
cleaning.
The use of fragrances should be avoided where possible, e.g. rooms should not be routinely
sprayed with air freshners.
Staff in the Gavarni Hotel in Paris regularly apply an ecolabelled deblocker to toilets that uses
enzymes to prevent blockages, avoiding the need for periodic deblocking with strong,
environmentally damaging chemicals.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 14
The monitoring of chemical use and record keeping are important components of good chemical
management. EU Ecolabel criteria for accommodation require establishments to submit a declaration
detailing all ecolabelled and non-ecolabelled active substances delivered, measured in kg. Figure 5.
provides an example of monthly reporting on chemical use. Best practice includes management
intervention to:
audit the consumption of and access to consumables, chemicals and hazardous materials in
housekeeping operations;
prepare an action plan with measurable, scheduled targets to reduce material and chemical
consumption and to integrate environmental considerations into purchasing procedures;
assign resources, appoint responsibility and provide training to ensure correct implementation
of the action plan;
record the type and quantity of all chemical purchases, and indicate whether they are
ecolabelled.
Housekeeping is an important control point for waste management, particularly with respect to waste
sorting and recycling. This is described in more detail in section 6.2, but the main points are
summarised here:
use room bins that do not require a plastic bag liner
separate waste from guest rooms into fractions sent for recyclable fractions.
Figure 5.17: An example of monthly chemical consumption, measured as kg active ingredient, and the
percentage of those chemicals that are ecolabelled, for a 160 room hotel (average
consumption 0.013 kg per guest-night in 2010)
-
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Calendar month
Active c
hem
ical consum
ption (
kg)
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Perc
enta
ge c
hem
icals
ecola
belle
d
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 15
Energy management and maintenance.
Housekeeping staff are responsible for room condition on a day-to-day basis, and constitute a key
control point for energy management and maintenance. Continuous staff training and clear reporting
procedures are essential. The following key check points are relevant:
turn off unnecessary equipment in guest rooms, including lights, TVs on standby, air
conditioning and heaters;
where it is policy to leave heaters or air-conditioners on for guest arrival (and in the absence of
a building management system: section 7.1), housekeeping staff should adjust these to an
appropriate temperature, i.e.:
◦ 26 ºC when cooling
◦ 18 ºC when heating
check for poorly fitting doors, windows, any draughts etc., and report to maintenance;
check for malfunctioning toilets, excessive water flow, leaking plugs (see section 5.1).
Applicability
Efficient cleaning, use of ecolabelled detergents, soaps and shampoos, green procurement of textiles,
and housekeeping measures to reduce energy consumption are applicable in all serviced
accommodation enterprises.
Towel and bedclothes reuse programmes to reduce laundry are applicable in all serviced
accommodation establishments, but will achieve small savings where a high proportion of guests stay
only one night (e.g. motels and airport hotels).
Economics
Green procurement
Consider the lifecycle cost of textiles, accounting for durability and washing requirements. Cotton-
polyester sheets last approximately 200 laundry cycles, compared with 100 for pure cotton sheets.
Annual laundry costs can be calculated using the following equation:
CA = (CP/(150/DN) + 150 x CL
CA Annual cost (EUR)
CP Purchase cost (EUR)
150 Estimated number of washes per item per year
DN Durability expressed in number of washes
CL Laundering cost (EUR per wash)
Laundry consumable costs vary widely depending on, in particular, the efficiency of laundry
processes, chemical prices (type of chemicals used) and energy prices (related to energy source) – see
Figure 5.22 in section 5.4. Nonetheless, laundry costs dominate annual servicing costs for sheets
(Table 5.). Purchasing a EUR 5 cotton-polyester sheet instead of a EUR 5 cotton sheet can save EUR
6 over a year through durability and reduced drying energy. For a EUR 10 sheet, this saving would
increase to EUR 9.75.
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 16
Table 5.16: Annual purchase and laundering costs for cotton-polyester and cotton sheets bought for
EUR 5 each
Purchase Laundering Total
Annual cost (EUR)
Cotton-polyester 3.75 35.25 39.00
Cotton 7.50 37.50 45.00
Green procurement of organic or ecolabelled cotton towels incurs a variable price premium, typically
in the region of 20 %. The useful lifetime of cotton towels is typically around 50 laundry cycles, but
cotton towels cost about half the price of sheets, and laundry costs still dominate lifecycle costs.
Laundry and purchase cost savings achieved by downsizing from excessively large towels could
easily cover the price premium of organic or ecolabelled towels.
Green procurement of chemicals also incurs a price premium, but this is relatively small compared
with other costs such as labour, and can be more than offset by training staff in efficient cleaning
methods.
Laundry reductions
Laundry volumes per room vary according to bed size, towel size, textile density, and number of
items provided per room – often in relation to accommodation rating. Accor (2007) refer to 4 kg per
room night, O'Neill et al. (2002) refer to values of between 2.4 and 5.8 kg per room night in the US.
Annual room textile laundering costs can be calculated from the following equation:
CA = (100/O) x VL x CL x DN
CA Annual cost per room EUR/yr/room
O Average annual occupancy rate %
VL Laundry volume kg
CL Laundry cost EUR/kg
DN Number of days open per year Days/yr
For a room with 75 % occupancy and 4 kg of laundry per room night open year around, and at a
laundry service cost of EUR 0.50 per kg, annual laundry costs would equate to EUR 479. Thus
laundry costs for a 100-room hotel could be EUR 47 900 per year, and a textile reuse rate of just 5 %
could save almost EUR 2 400 per year.
A small 14-room hotel in the UK saved EUR 700 per year following the introduction of a simple linen
reuse policy (Envirowise, 2008).
To encourage guest participation in reuse programmes, savings may be invested in environmental
programmes (e.g. Accor 'Plant for the Planet' funding), or in onsite environmental initiatives.
Energy management
Simple measures to reduce energy use during housekeeping can save significant amounts of money,
especially in relation to temperature regulation. In the absence of a building management system,
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 17
reducing thermostat temperature by just 1 ºC can reduce heating energy consumption by up to 10 %,
whilst closing shutters and curtains in summer can significantly reduce the demand on air
conditioning systems (see section 7.3).
Efficient cleaning
Efficient cleaning techniques reduce chemical and water costs. For example, one less toilet flush
every time a room is cleaned in a 100-room hotel could save EUR 330 per year, at a water price of
EUR 2.00 per litre.
Despite significantly higher upfront costs for microfiber compared with conventional mops
(EUR 2.72 compared with EUR 0.33 per 100 rooms cleaned), and higher washing costs (EUR 23.52
compared with EUR 3.92 per 100 rooms cleaned), the lifecycle cost of cleaning using microfiber
mops is 5 % lower than conventional mops owing to 95 % chemical and water savings and 10 %
labour savings (Espinozal et al., 2010).
Through substitution of cleaning chemicals in laundry and housekeeping operations, a small 14-room
hotel in the UK was able to save EUR 1 700 per year (Envirowise, 2008).
Driving force for implementation
Efficient housekeeping measures, such as staff training in efficient and chemical-free cleaning and
energy management, can achieve significant cost reductions with small investment costs. Similarly,
towel and bedclothes reuse programmes can be driven by economic factors, although where savings
are reinvested into other environmental programmes CSR and image may be more important.
Green procurement of durable bedclothes with lower lifecycle servicing costs is driven by economic
factors, but green procurement of organic or ecolabelled textiles is driven by CSR and marketing –
ecolabelled products are a highly visible indication of environmental responsibility that can add value
to the service offer.
Reference organisations
Accor, Gavarni Hotel Paris, Strattons Hotel UK, EU Ecolabel and Nordic Swan ecolabelled hotels
(e.g. Best Western and Scandic hotels).
References
Accor, Earth guest: sustainable development 2009/2010, Accor, 2010, Paris.
Accor, Plant for the Planet webpage accessed October 2011:
http://www.accorplantsfortheplanet.com/en/programme_en.html
Alliance for Water Efficiency, Hotels and Motels Introduction, Alliance for Water Efficiency,
accessed August 2011:
http://www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org/hotels_and_motels.aspx?terms=hotels+and+motels
Carbon Trust, Energy saving opportunities in laundries: how to reduce the energy bill and the
carbon footprint of your laundry, Carbon Trust, 2009, London UK. CTV040.
DTC LTC, personal communication with DTC LTC laundry consultants UK, 16.08.2011.
EC, Commission Decision of 21 June 2007 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of
the Community ecolabel to soaps, shampoos and hair conditioners (notified under document
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 18
number C(2007) 3127), Text with EEA relevance) (2007/506/EC), OJEU L 186/36, 2007,
Brussels.
EC, Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008 of 5 September 2008 laying down detailed
rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production
and labelling of organic products with regard to organic production, labelling and control,
OJEU L 250/1, 2008, Brussels.
EC, Commission Decision of 9 July 2009 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of
the Community Ecolabel for textile products (notified under document number C (2009) 4595)
(Text with EEA relevance) (2009/567/EC), OJEU 197/70, Brussels.
EC, Commission Decision of 9 July 2009 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of
the Community Ecolabel for tissue paper (notified under document number C(2009) 4596)
(Text with EEA relevance) (2009/568/EC), OJEU L 197/87, 2009, Brussels.
EC, Commission Decision of 28 June 2011 on establishing the ecological criteria for the award
of the EU Ecolabel to all-purpose cleaners and sanitary cleaners (notified under document
C(2011) 4442) (Text with EEA relevance) (2011/383/EU), OJEU L 169/52, 2011, Brussels.
Envirowise, Resource efficiency at a small hotel, case study CS 616R, Envirowise, 2008,
Didcot UK.
Espinoza1, T., Geiger, C., Everson, I., The Real Costs of Institutional 'Green' Cleaning, San
Francisco Department of Environment, 2010, San Francisco.
Fabrics Net, homepage accessed November 2011: http://www.fabrics.net/fabric-facts/cotton/
Gössling, S., Peeters, P., Hall., M., Ceron, J.P., Dubois, G., Lehmann, L.V., Scott, D.,
Tourism and water use: supply, demand and security. An international review, Tourism
Management, Vol. 33 (2011), pp. 1 – 15.
Kalliala, E.M., Nousiainen, P., Environmental profile of cotton and polyester-cotton fabrics,
AUTEX Research Journal 1, 1999.
MADE-BY, Environmental benchmark for fibres Version 2.0, MADE-BY, 2011, Santa
Barbara, US.
Muthu, S.S., Li, Y., Hu, J.Y., Mok, P.Y., Quantification of environmental impact and
ecological sustainability for textile fibres, Ecological Indicators, Vol. 13 (2012), pp. 66 – 74.
Nordic Swan, Nordic ecolabelling of hotels and youth hostels, version 3.2, 14 June 2007 – 30
June 2012, Nordic Swan, 2007, Norway.
O'Neill & Siegelbaum and the RICE Group, Hotel Water Conservation: A Seattle
Demonstration, Seattle Public Utilities, 2002.
Smith, M., Hargroves, K., Desha, C., & Stasinopoulos, P., Water transformed – Australia:
Sustainable water solutions for climate change adaptation. Australia: The Natural Edge Project,
TNEP, 2009. Available at:
http://www.naturaledgeproject.net/Sustainable_Water_Solutions_Portfolio.aspx.
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http://www.thetravelfoundation.org.uk/green_business_tools/greener_accommodations/water/
Best practice 5.3 – Efficient housekeeping
Best Environmental Management Practise in the Tourism Sector 19
IMPRINT This document is an extract from a Scientific and Policy report by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the
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How to cite this document
This best practice is an extract from the report Best Environmental Management Practice in the Tourism
Sector to be cited as: Styles D., Schönberger H., Galvez Martos J. L., Best Environmental Management
Practice in the Tourism Sector, EUR 26022 EN, doi:10.2788/33972.
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